The Mind of Christ – A New Process
The Mind of Christ – A New Process
“Who is able to understand the mind of Lord Yahweh? Who is able to be His teacher? We, however, have the mind of Christ!” (1 Corinthians 2:16).
“We have…” (Greek, “echomen”), which means ‘are having,’ ‘are keeping,’ or ‘are holding;’ to have and to keep on having, an action in progress; a process that is now taking place; the present state is a continuing state. So the literal translation is, “We, however, are having the mind of Christ.” Through the Holy Spirit, we now are new creatures who were given the capacity to learn how to think like the Messiah, the Anointed One. To gradually possess the mind of the Anointed One means we are in the process of acquiring anointed minds ourselves.
“… the mind of Christ.” (Greek for mind is “noun”); Through the Holy Spirit…
We are being given the capacity to think the thoughts of the Anointed One;
We have the growing ability to reason, to be logical, and to think things through like Jesus;
We are being infused with the ability to understand God’s wisdom;
We are being equipped with the moral intelligence of the Lord;
We are being given access to the reasoning behind the actions of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit;
We are in the process of perceiving spiritual matters as Christ perceives them;
We have an increasing ability to understand life from God’s perspective;
We will be continually inspired to develop the divine common sense and street-smart shrewdness that Jesus was known for;
We are gaining insight into what truly matters according to the thinking of God;
We have a growing ability to reflect and ponder according to the will of Christ;
We enjoy an ongoing co-mingling of our mind with Christ’s mind, until the end, when the new will have completely replaced the old, and those two minds will be indistinguishable.
Keeping our New Wits. A very enjoyable translation of this verse comes from the old Wycliffe version, which states, “We have the wit of Christ.” It’s great fun to consider that with the mind of Christ, we are destined to grow in our ability to be witty, to become as quick-witted as Jesus. Certainly, with His mind, we will grow in our ability to keep our wits, which are actually His wits, the more we depend on Him.
Transfusion. Acquiring the mind of Christ is like a spiritual version of a complete blood transfusion. Our old, unredeemed mind is infected with sin, full of deadly toxins. In order to survive, then, the old mind needs to be gradually and completely replaced by the cleansed mind of God. In medical terms, what is needed is a total blood transfusion, an “exchange transfusion” of blood. In spiritual terms, imagine the Holy Spirit engaging in the process of keeping each of us hooked up to His spiritual catheter, His invisible access to our mind, and then infusing the mind with the life-giving presence of God Himself. The Spirit of the Lord flowing into the spirit of our mind, while the old ways of thinking are taken away. The Adam-mind replaced by the Christ-mind. This spiritual transfusion happens gradually but surely as one follows Jesus and is connected through a personal relationship with Him to the power of His Spirit.
A Gift of Grace. As with any total blood transfusion, this spiritual process of acquiring the mind of Christ is a total gift from beginning to end. This process can only be provided by someone outside of oneself. Gaining the mind of Christ is a transfusion that in no way depends on one’s intellectual abilities, or natural brilliance, or personal resources. Only a qualified medical staff is able to perform a successful blood transfusion, and only the Spirit of God can conduct the spiritual transformation of one’s mind. Only the Spirit has the spiritual catheters that are up to the task of replacing the old infected mind with the new, perfectly clean mind. This process is a daily one, taking out the old and replacing with the new, that completely changes the way one thinks, decides and understands. Acquiring the mind of Christ is the process of receiving more of what one already has received in the Spirit. It is to possess more of what is already in our possession. When we finally meet God and embrace Him, we will completely understand what God has eternally understood. “For now I know partly, then I will know fully, just as God has fully known me.” (1 Cor. 13:12). In the New Kingdom, our minds will be fully transfused in Christ, and we will enjoy a true meeting of the minds with God.
Brain Matter. It doesn’t appear that the Spirit will actually rewire our brains, or add more neurons, or enlarge the brain muscle in some way. When we start following Jesus, our being a new creature doesn’t mean we have a new physical body, which would include the brain. Our brain is the physical organ that supports the more intangible functions of the mind, such as thinking, deciding, reasoning, even feeling. The mind consists of the rather abstract activities that are enabled by the more tangible aspects of the brain. So, in many ways, the physical brain controls the operations of the mind. But, being a new creature in Christ, now we have the wonderful prospect of God being able to control our brain any way He sees fit! The brain has a lot to say as to how we think, but Creator God has a lot say about how the brain functions. The tangible brain matter might control the intangible mind, but now the Lord has even more to say about how our mind operates. After all, God can heal any part of our body He wants to, including our brain. The Holy Spirit may not suddenly make someone intellectually brilliant, but we do know that, more importantly, He will enable us to develop true divine wisdom.
The Extent of the Miracle. And now consider what a profound and unfathomable miracle takes place as the Christian believer acquires the mind of Christ! The Holy Spirit enables us to access the very mind of the Almighty God, to actually know His thoughts? Ponder this supernatural gift along with St. Paul:
“O the depth of the riches and the wisdom and knowledge of God!
How unsearchable are His decisions, and His paths beyond finding out!
Who has understood the mind of Yahweh? Who knows enough to give Him advice?
Or, who has given Him so much that He needs to pay it back?
For everything was created by Him, everything lives through Him, and everything exists for Him;
So to Him must be given the glory forever! Amen! (Romans 11:33-36).
May The Mind of Christ My Savior by Jake Armerding (Acoustic and Vocal) with lyrics (youtube.com)